Show animals and birds find plenty of use for tails certain species of mice have extraordinary tra long tails which are used as balancing organs while making long leaps in another species of mice the tail seems to have no purpose at all as it is only a remnant among the larger mammals the bear and elephant have about the smallest tails in relation to their size although the elephant had his compensated tor for by a proboscis on the other end we may think the common cottontail was slighted in this respect writes a correspondent in the detroit news but apt it has a tail nearly as long as a bear and furthermore it serves as a signal of danger much the same as the tail of the deer the gila monster finds his ta tau I 1 an excellent place for food storage the alligator uses its tail as a weapon andas and as a powerful lever in turning its body over and over after seizing its diey prey in this way the alligator tears its food or victim as the case may be the great order of insects show a wide diversity in structure and function of tails or tail like appendages it if one is expert enough to read the signals of the skunks tail he can tell when to retreat to a safety zone some people claim they can pick up a skunk by the tail with perfect impunity but some skunks are too clever tor for persons to take this advantage of them others claim they can pick up a porcupine by the tail without danger however unless you are an expert you wili will probably find it a very effective war club worthy of considerable respect the beavers tail is used to spank out on the water a warning of approaching pro aching danger some tails serve chiefly as ornaments as in the peacock the lyre bird and pheasants the ruffed grouse is a famous dandy which during the drumming period struts about vainly displaying the coloration of his tall tail feathers of course we all know that the horses tail is not only an ornament but also a fly swatter however the question still remains of what use is a pigs tail |